We believe that God is tripersonal, and that Muslims believe that God is unipersonal. But there is also a Quranic text that seems problematic if you believe that we worship the same God, and that’s Surah 3:54.
When translated correctly, it says that Allah is the greatest of deceivers; this means that he is even more of a deceiver than Satan himself. Isn’t this whole thing kind of problematic?

JESUS said to the Samaritan woman “You Samaritans worship what you do not know”, therefore I personally would put Muslims in the same boat.

Muslims focus on the proper conduct of the faith without feeling whom they are worshipping (a flesh worshiping rather than spiritual one) where GOD must be worshiped in both as indicated by JESUS to that Samaritan woman.

Also The Catechism of the Catholic Church said that Muslims “acknowledge the Creator” which does not mean “knowing the Creator”.

So simply “Muslims worship what they do not know”.

**(John 4:19-21):
**“Sir,” the woman said, “I can see that you are a prophet. Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.”
“Woman,” Jesus replied, “believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”

CCC 841:* "The Church’s relationship with the Muslims. “The plan of salvation also includes those who acknowledge the Creator, in the first place amongst whom are the Muslims; these profess to hold the faith of Abraham, and together with us they adore the one, merciful God, mankind’s judge on the last day.”*

I didn’t go to the answering-islam site, so maybe he covered this already, but the root of the word used in the Qur’an, makara (مكر), comes from the room M-K-R, which can mean craftiness, wiliness, deceit, deception, trick, guile, etc., depending on context. Looking at translations not made by Sam Shamoun, we see forms like: “And they (the disbelievers) schemed, and Allah schemed (against them): and Allah is the best of schemers” (Pickthall) and “And (the unbelievers) plotted and planned, and Allah too planned, and the best of planners is Allah” (Yusuf Ali). It seems that the point is not in what adjective you use to describe Allah, but in that whatever the unbelievers do, Allah outdoes them in that. This is the Qur’an version of the old Irving Berlin song “Anything you can do I can do better”, if you will.

I think Catholics want to trick themselves into believing they have the same God as the muslims when in reality their doctrine forces them to deny nearly all of the most important aspects of the islamic God.

I think Catholics want to trick themselves into believing they have the same God as the muslims when in reality their doctrine forces them to deny nearly all of the most important aspects of the islamic God.

The Catholics teach that Muslims have an incorrect understanding of God. We of course reject the misunderstood parts. :shrug:

I think Catholics want to trick themselves into believing they have the same God as the muslims when in reality their doctrine forces them to deny nearly all of the most important aspects of the islamic God.

The Catholic Church teaches that Muslim’s have an only imperfect understanding of God.

Quite wrong to say that only the Muslims have an ‘imperfect’ idea of the Creator. For a start they have 99 names for Him trying to encompass His Greatness. They do not rely on pretty pictures or strange statues of old bearded humans to concentrate their minds on Him. God is pure spirit, pure intellect - any human depiction is an absurdity.
The truth is we all have an imperfect idea of God. Without the Incarnation we would all be stumbling in the dark. God is unknowable, ineffable, beyond our wildest imaginings.
We still find it very very hard to reconcile the wrathful vengeful God of OT with the loving God of NT. Did He change? Only thru Jesus do we know Him as a loving Father. Many many people still fear God the Wrathful Judge when they die & amend their lives because of the certainty of punishment & Hell Fire.

841 The Church’s relationship with the Muslims. “The plan of salvation also includes those who acknowledge the Creator, in the first place amongst whom are the Muslims; these profess to hold the faith of Abraham, and together with us they adore the one, merciful God, mankind’s judge on the last day.”

“PROFESS to hold the faith of Abraham”

842 The Church’s bond with non-Christian religions is in the first place the common origin and end of the human race:

All nations form but one community. This is so because all stem from the one stock which God created to people the entire earth, and also because all share a common destiny, namely God. His providence, evident goodness, and saving designs extend to all against the day when the elect are gathered together in the holy city. . .331

843 The Catholic Church recognizes in other religions that search, among shadows and images, for the God who is unknown yet near since he gives life and breath and all things and wants all men to be saved. Thus, the Church considers all goodness and truth found in these religions as "a preparation for the Gospel and given by him who enlightens all men that they may at length have life."332

844 In their religious behavior, however, men also display the limits and errors that disfigure the image of God in them:

Very often, deceived by the Evil One, men have become vain in their reasonings, and have exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and served the creature rather than the Creator. Or else, living and dying in this world without God, they are exposed to ultimate despair.333

845 To reunite all his children, scattered and led astray by sin, the Father willed to call the whole of humanity together into his Son’s Church. The Church is the place where humanity must rediscover its unity and salvation. The Church is “the world reconciled.” She is that bark which “in the full sail of the Lord’s cross, by the breath of the Holy Spirit, navigates safely in this world.” According to another image dear to the Church Fathers, she is prefigured by Noah’s ark, which alone saves from the flood.334

I didn’t go to the answering-islam site, so maybe he covered this already, but the root of the word used in the Qur’an, makara (مكر), comes from the room M-K-R, which can mean craftiness, wiliness, deceit, deception, trick, guile, etc., depending on context. Looking at translations not made by Sam Shamoun, we see forms like: “And they (the disbelievers) schemed, and Allah schemed (against them): and Allah is the best of schemers” (Pickthall) and “And (the unbelievers) plotted and planned, and Allah too planned, and the best of planners is Allah” (Yusuf Ali). It seems that the point is not in what adjective you use to describe Allah, but in that whatever the unbelievers do, Allah outdoes them in that. This is the Qur’an version of the old Irving Berlin song “Anything you can do I can do better”, if you will.

We do not. For to say that I, or any other muslim, unknowingly worships a trinity is an attack on me [and my ability to think coherently], my scriptures and the clarity of every muslim theologian who ever lived. I’m opposed to falsehood; irrespective of who utters it. Likewise, I’m in favor of truth; irrespective of who utters it. We muslims do not believe in the same deity as christians; anyone can figure this out by a simple reading of keey Qur’anic verses. A simple layman/laywoman armed with the Qur’an is superior to every Pope, Cardinal and Priest without it.

“O People of the Scripture, do not commit excess in your religion or say about Allah except the truth. The Messiah, Jesus, the son of Mary, was but a messenger of Allah and His word which He directed to Mary and a soul [created at a command] from Him. So believe in Allah and His messengers. And do not say, “Three”; desist - it is better for you. Indeed, Allah is but one God. Exalted is He above having a son. To Him belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth. And sufficient is Allah as Disposer of affairs.”